THE ENGLISH 11 BLOCK C SHORT STORY WIKI STARTS HERE. (PLEASE DO NOT NAME ANY OF THE CHARACTERS) (SETTING: COUNTRYSIDE GENRE: SUSPENSE) (PLEASE DO NOT CHANGE CHARACTERS OR SETTING UNLESS COMPLETELY NECESSARY) (Thank you- The Surgeons)
Amnesia is a dull and desperate thing. Whereas usual silence and boredom can be replaced with thoughts of recent events or relations I've had with people, amnesia lets you think about nothing but not thinking. It's a wearisome paradox, and I'd been rolling around in it for about five minutes now. With no light or sound but my own quiet breaths and shuffling and no identifiable shapes or objects around me, my lack of memory was put methodically aside by my instinctive brain and I instead began worrying about more physical things. Questions such as "Where am I?", "When will I eat?", and "How do I get out?" took priority in my brain and I started combing the walls for a door or anything that would give me a clue about, well, anything! I finally came to what seemed like a door, except it only came up to my waist. It had no knob or lock to signify that it was a door other than the crack between it and the rest of the wall. I pressed my ear against it and listened intently. My migraines were getting worse. Flashes of blinding colours inundated my brain me without warning and caused a searing pain in my head. Sometimes memories would come and rush into my head, but then the pain came back and the memories drifted away as fast as they had arrived. I was desperate for answers. I was getting nervous that I would never have my memories back, but what difference would that make? If I didn't have them, what was there to be worried about? After what seemed like hours had passed, I finally heard footsteps and what sounded like a lifetime's worth of smoking coming through a series of loud coughs. The steps came closer and closer, until they were right on the other side of the door.
The steps that I heard encouraged me to give a yelp of sheer confusion and frustration. I was desperate for help. Who was on the other side of the door? There was no response to my cry. The disappointment and exhaustion shook me to the bone. I heard the sounds of more footsteps coming up stairs. Suddenly, the door opened inwardly and I was bombarded by the light that burned into my retinas. I had to look away, so my captor was left in my brain as a shadowy silhouette. A hand came in, grabbed me by my collar, and quickly pulled me through the small opening. The new ground felt like dirt beneath my knees, and I breathed in some much-appreciated fresh air. As my eyes slowly adjusted, I saw miles upon miles of open plains, which only added to my perplexion. The captor shoved a loaf of bread into my hand and said "You might wanna' eat this". It was the voice of a man, and it was hoarse and rugged. I chewed and tried to swallow, but the past few hours have taken a toll on my thirst, and my mouth was essentially reduced to a barren desert. "Water", I croaked. A canteen was thrust into my chest. The water was grainy, but who was I to complain? I looked up at my captor for the first time, and I instantly felt a wave of menace. His stubbly chin and leathery cheeks matched his gravelly voice. The vintage rifle he held also made him look like he was from a different time period. Although his rifle wasn't pointed at me, it was still near enough to keep me on edge. His tattered jeans and torn shirt only embellished my view of him but the impertinent look he shot at me was the cherry on top. He looked at me as if I were a prisoner. Was I? There was no one else in sight, but I knew it would be impossible to get away. I could run for days, but he would still have a clear shot at me on this sullen and grim prairie.
I felt slightly better after the water filled the cracks in my throat, and the pain in my head was slowly subsiding, but I was far from being content. It is hard to be at ease when one is held against one's will in the middle of nowhere without any recollection of how one got into this sorry state. I tried my best to recall what happened to me, but I still couldn't remember anything at all. I told myself that I needed to calm down and keep my spirits high in order in order to find a way out of this mess, but how on Earth was I supposed to escape from my captor? Before I knew it, I had been shoved back into the small dark room. Minutes later, the face of the disgruntled man appeared again and looked down on me. Fear gripped me and I shrank away, trying to get as far away from this mysterious man as possible. He opened his mouth and said in his gruff voice, "I'm going out. Don't go trying anything stupid. You won't get far ‘cause a storm's comin'." He swung the door shut, and I was once again left in the dark to ponder my predicament. What was I going to do?
I took a deep breath. I had no idea what was going to happen next and I felt that I was going to lose my mind in this tornado of unexpected events. I took another breath to calm myself down, and I tried to recollect my thoughts. I found that I could think much better after that breath and I carefully analyzed my situation. I knew that I couldn't just stay here and wait for that dangerous-looking man to come back. Who was he anyway? Why did he kidnap me? Was he working for others? What does he want? Anxiety started to creep back into my mind. My primal urge for escape allowed me to yet again make my way to the door, but I still couldn't feel anything except that crack between the door and the wall. I got up to my feet and used the only strength I had left in my broken body in an attempt to smash the door. Surprisingly, the door was unlocked, so it swung open quite easily and I pathetically fell onto the soft and moist dirt from my foolish burst of force. The sudden presence of light pierced my eyes yet again and I became dazed for a second or so. After coming to, I slowly picked up my aching body and threw myself forwards as fast as I could with sense of direction or path whatsoever. The only thought in my brain now was escape. I ran without stopping for what seemed like hours on end until I tripped and collapsed clumsily onto the ground. By then, I was already panting vigorously and desperate for water yet again. Exhausted and near unconsciousness, the voice of my captor suddenly echoed through my brain, "You won't get far, and a storm's comin'." And then waves of blackness crushed my thoughts as I passed out on the ground.
I woke up in the late afternoon. The sun was starting to set in the direction I had just come from, and a gigantic storm loomed ahead. Menacing clouds stretched across the dark sky only to be interrupted at brief intervals by flashes of lightning. The thought of the impending storm was quickly brushed aside as the remembrance of my captor and the thought of him following me choked my other thoughts. I realized that a person like him would not bother to capture me again and would prefer sending a bullet into my body instead. With that thought planted into my brain, I swiftly decided to travel parallel to the storm for as long as I could. Something suddenly felt wrong. My head whipped around and to my horror, my eyes drew a vague silhouette of a man on the horizon. I turned and ran hard. I had been running for less than ten minutes when the storm reached me. The rain drenched my clothes and slowed me down, but I continued running regardless. I ran until I could run no more. I threw another glance over my shoulder but saw not even a bump in the perfect horizon this time. It wasn't comforting at all, for the rain had limited my sight to less than a kilometre. Exhausted and hungry, I looked around for shelter so I could get out of the wind and rain. To my dismay, there was nothing; absolutely nothing. I continued to trudge wearily through the rain, feeling my energy fading just a little bit more after each step.
About twenty minutes later, I was breathing heavily and my body refused to move anymore. My knees buckled under me and I fell to the ground. The thunder growled and the rain continued to soak my entire body. I felt cold and scared, and I was reminded that there was a chance that I could die without even knowing anything about myself. I closed my eyes in despair. Suddenly, I felt a beam of light. I made my eyes squint to get a better look. It was a car, stationary, with two people getting off. I tried my best to figure out who they were and what they were doing. "You caught him?" I heard one of them ask. "Yeah... yesterday. It was really hard to catch him. There were a lot of guards, you know,” replied the all too familiar, coarse voice.
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I was so exhausted that I didn't have any energy left to escape from the men exiting the car. I was almost ready to give up but then I decided to drag my limp body behind a tall mound of grass. The two people were still talking and I knew sooner or later, that they would notice that I was hiding close to where they were and to force me back into the little dark room, or worse, kill me. My headaches came back with a vengeance. I didn’t know what was going to happen once they caught me. Hunger haunted my stomach and pain wrecked my brain. I expected death as I closed my eyes and listened to the people as they came closer. I could hear their footsteps getting closer and closer but unexpectedly, their feet stopped. I reluctantly opened my eyes and saw a tall man with short blond hair and light brown eyes looking at me. The man who kidnapped me was absent and I saw the back of a man walking away from me. The tall men came closer to me and in very succinct dialogue, he asked, “Why are you here?” The man increased my anxiety. I didn't reply because my brain did not have the energy or courage to speak and I genuinely did not know my answer. He stretched one hand out of his pocket to help me get up. “Let’s go, it’s too dangerous for you to be here, take these,” he muttered. He gave me a water bottle and a piece of ham and pointed to his left. “Go straight until you see a gas station” he said as he left me and returned to the car. As the car drove away, I followed his instructions. Somehow I found the energy to run and I ran without stopping because I couldn't feel my body anymore. I didn't know how I could I run that fast. It was as if my body floated with the wind. Survival ran through my mind. Why did I listen to the man and follow his directions? Did I know him? The terrible excruciating headache came again and forced me to stop thinking and just run. The rain soaked my clothes and added weight to my heavy steps. What about the man who kidnapped me? I could not stop my brain from functioning. Why didn’t he see me when he was so close to me? My mind was plagued by questions. "Maybe I will get the answers when I get to the gas station." I comforted myself.
Though my sprint started out fairly invigorated by my aspiration to reach the gas station, my strength started, once again, to wane. It felt as if, after running through what seemed like a few kilometres of barren land, I had fled from the storm. After a debilitating battle against both the storm and my physical fatigue, a road uncannily appeared before me. I was glad to be on gravel again, and I was met with a rather inexplicable, yet scorching sun. To quench my now unyielding thirst, I uncapped the bottle that I had received and took a generous gulp of water. I ended up depleting the entire bottle, and was now left with one thing left to fill my mind: intense hunger. The piece of ham, though plain and devoid of supplementary condiments, would suffice for my current situation. I devoured the ham like a wild animal would, and continued on my route. Now I had cleared my worries. Nothing was on my mind except what was ahead of me; the initially distant gas station suddenly appeared in plain sight. At this instance, me unsatisfied stomach growled, and I rushed for a seemingly, too-good-to-be-true convenience store that was under the roof of the gas station, in the hopes of finding food. Upon a closer examination of the gas station, I discovered that it was as abandoned as the rest of the barren land. I suddenly realized that a gas station found in a rustic prairie region in the middle of nowhere would not have any occupants or customers as for that matter. Now, I had nothing left and was nearly out of options as well. I needed sustenance, and quick. Despite being deserted, the gas station still maintained a convenience store like I had hoped for and my first instinct was to scrutinize the place for food or answers. The dusty doorknob was jammed, and the antiquated door was barred from the inside. I kicked three times as hard as I could with what remaining energy I had, and destroyed the weathered, rusty door. Behind it was nothing but an old worn out counter and some naked aisles. My hopes were crushed yet again, and I would soon encounter the worst possible outcome of my escape. I caught sight of the two guards, both armed with rifles, in my peripheral vision, riding in a vehicle that was getting closer and closer to the gas station. I hid behind the counter, hoping they would not notice a figure inside the shop; hoping that they would leave this place alone; hoping that I could remember my true identity and get out of this predicament.
An old worn out gas station
I hid myself behind the counter, and tried my best not to make any sound. The hunger was painful, and my stomach cried out loudly for food. The sound was so loud that it had caught the attention of the two guards. I prayed to God that they would not be able to find me. Unfortunately, I felt four strong hands grab me by my collar, and pull me out of the counter. I really wanted to know who I was before I was killed by the two guards. But, the guards treated me well! They didn't scold or beat me and instead they gave me some nuts, chocolate bars and water. I think they just want to fill up my empty stomach like a prison’s last meal before sending me to the hell. When I looked at the faces of the two guards however, I felt as if I knew them. I tried to force my brain to drag their profiles out of darkness, but I started to have an extreme headache.
My head throbbed. I couldn't stand it anymore. I needed to know who the guards were. "Who are you?" I bursted. "And who am I?" One of them shook his head. The other one said, "We ask the questions around here. NOT YOU." Suddenly, I felt the pain in my head intensifying. My vision started to blur. I felt dizzy the world began to swirl before my eyes. They looked as if they were saying something to me. 'Am I drugged?' I thought. Then, I understood what was happening. I realized then that they had drugged me with their food. I never should have eaten the food they gave me. I ate what they gave without any hesitation, even though I didn't know them at all. Why am I so stupid? I thought about escaping but, I knew it was too late. I was almost about to faint, but I had to know more about them and myself! It was my last thought before I blacked out.
I woke up in the same dark room again. Who am I? Why am I here? Had I been drugged for all this time? So many questions were in my mind but I couldn’t find the answer for any of them. Did the drugs allow me to forget about my identity? My head felt like someone was slowly frying it it and my body felt numb. This time, I didn't want to escape anymore. I want to find out who I am, and why I was trapped here like a lab rat. How do I not know my identity? Was it due to the drugs the kidnapper gave me? The more I thought about who I was, the more my head ached. I decided then that I would stay here until I find out who I really am, and why I was brought to this abandoned place. I made up my mind to stay strong and never back down to these kidnappers. From now on, I will find out who I really am instead of running away. I can’t live my life in despair anymore. I need to start finding the answers to my questions.
After a while though, my migraines ceased. Did those drugs somehow let free my inability to recollect my memories? Those drugs must have helped speed up my brain's recovery. Why were those voices so familiar? My captor started to look familiar as well. Deep inside of my head, I knew that person. I began to pace inside this dark, empty box, and I tried to dig deeper and deeper. And then it hit me! These people were keeping me here because I knew something! What did I know? What kind of information would be important enough to bring me into being secluded in a tiny unlit box placed in a vast, empty prairie? I then heard the ever-so familiar sound of footsteps approaching. I quickly stood up and shrank away from the door knowing that my eyes couldn't take any more of that piercing light. The door burst open and in walked the captor, with his rifle in hand. I edged back into a corner and opened my mouth to say something but he beat me to it. “There’s no use running away. You won't get your memory back so easily.” He raised his rifle and shot me cleanly in the chest.
I woke up in fear, panting, putting my hand over my chest to where blood should've been gushing out from. It was dry. It was only a dream, and before I could reassure myself, the door flew open and it was the captor- but for real, this time. He must have found out my attempted escape from the guards because he looked furious. But I was more focused on the rifle in his hand. “You can’t get it back,” he bellowed. “Get…what?” I questioned dim-wittedly. “Your memories.” How did he know about my amnesia? A million questions were going through my mind and the confusion created a wave of pain. "My memory? What? Why?" What uneased me the most was how these people knew everything about me yet I knew nothing about them or even myself. "It's not time for you to know yet," he snapped and stormed out the room.
It was most likely nighttime, as I had recognized a small campfire for about two meters ahead of me after I had peeked through the narrow crack between the room's wall and its door. The surroundings were dark and gloomy. I tried to think about who I was and the reason I had been detained in this seemingly familiar room. It was not long before the headaches resurfaced. I shook my head trying hard to forget the pain and instead thought about the solutions to those questions. I just could not continue on thinking, and somehow, I felt that the irritating headache had grown worse instead. "Alright, enough!" I thought. The best way for me to avoid the overwhelming headache was to let my brain rest, to be totally carefree and fall asleep. My thoughts drifted like clouds in the air, and my mind was finally was at rest.
When I woke up the next morning slightly calmed, but a series of footsteps coming from outside made my hair stand up yet again. It must have been two men approaching me since both of them walked with the sounds of heavy boots. One man with a coarse voice was whispering to the other man saying "When do you think we can be sent back? Soon?" "Don't think so, we probably need to stay here for another three or four months." The other retorted. Another robotic and rugged voice responded. The conversation was not at all distinct for me. Their banter did remind me of something, but unfortunately, my brain had difficulty relating to the conversation. Time must have passed swiftly. When I looked out from the crack in my room, I saw someone walking towards me holding something that was impossible to identify with such a small crack. Mindlessly, I retreated a little. I must have been scared by that captor who had fired a bullet to my chest in my dreams with uncontrollable anger. As I pondered what might happen to me if I did not make an effort to escape the door opened and revealed two men standing in front of me. One grabbed my collar and the other held a rifle. The door shut behind me immediately as I was dragged to the ground. "Go! Don't stand there!" one of the guards shouted. I was led to a scarcely illuminated room and inside I could barely see anyone. The huge metal door that had the same height of the wall closed right after I entered the room. An irrepressible ray of silvery white light struck my entire body and all of a sudden, everything in sight disappeared. Upon waking into a room surrounded by glass containing what seemed like scientific machines I underwent pains throughout my body. From head to toe, I felt extraordinarily hot and I could hardly breathe. I saw many people gathered around the glass, watching me intently as if they were looking for results.
My head at this point could no longer stand the pain. Sharp stares were scrutinizing me intently and with surprise as if I was an outer worldly being. The containers and scientific equipment looked dangerous. There were tools that looked as if they were made to do something rather grotesque and the liquids in some of the containers looked very much like human blood. Everything in the room disturbed me greatly and my head, which was saying good morning by starting up the migraines, wasn't helping. I then saw that a guard was moving. As a matter of fact, he was coming straight for me and he wasn't holding a Happy Meal. In his hand was a tool. The tool was the last thing I remembered as I passed out for the hundredth time today. I woke up back in a room. What a surprise. I inspected my body for potential harm but, amazingly, found none. I guess the guard didn't kill or mutilate me. I surveyed my surroundings. There was no doubt about it. I was back in the room that led to the prairies.
As I sat there wondering what was going to happen next, I heard a thud from outside the small door. Curious, I got up and cautiously walked over. At this point, my migraines had started up again but they didn't bother me as much as before. As I edged closer and closer to the door, I noticed that I was sweating furiously and that my heartbeat was off the charts. My migraines were also starting to get to the point where the pain was unbearable and I could hear thumping inside my head. Why was this happening? When I got close enough to touch the doorknob, I saw something I hadn't previously noticed. The door wasn't made of wood. As a matter of fact, the door looked as if it was a machine of some sort. Thump, thump. I turned the knob and the door opened outwards a crack. Outwards? Didn't the door open inward from the outside? Wasn't that how the man opened the door, from the outside? Did the door open outwards when I first opened it? "Okay, so the door opens either way, you're a genius." I jumped at the sound of the voice. "Who's there?" I asked. Only the ambiguous silence of the darkness answered. "Is anyone there?" No answer. Befuddled, I turned my attention back to the door. Thump, thump, thump went my head. Why don't I just go ask my captor some questions to get to the bottom of this? My hand closed around the knob of the door. Thump, thump. I started to turn the knob slowly in a clockwise direction, but I forgot that it didn't open that way so I released the knob to try again. Thump, thump, thump. I wiped my sweaty hands on my pants and closed my hand around the knob again. THUMP, THUMP. This time, I turned the knob counterclockwise. The door opened and my world started to spin. Where was the campfire? I opened the door further and stepped outwards. THUMP, THUMP, THUMP. There was no grass. The air was the same. The ground did not become dirt. I was in another room. Extremely confused, I turned around. The door had disappeared! THUMP, THUMP, THUMP. I wanted to scream out in frustration but my voice didn't work anymore. "I don't get this! What is going on? And why on Earth is this happening to me?" "Because you're special." It was the voice again! I turned towards the direction of the voice. Nobody was there. THUMP, THUMP, THUMP, THUMP. I looked around me to find the source of the voice but was only greeted by the darkness. And then I knew that I was more or less insane. The darkness of the new room started to move. It became a shroud of wisps and tendrils that reached for everything with a sort of lust that was not of this world. The shroud wrapped around the room and slowly devoured the room with delight. And then it came for me. The darkness engulfed my being and the world as I knew it ended. My mind exploded from the pain into an array of colours. It was a full palette of reds, oranges and everything in between. But then, the colours changed. The reds and oranges started to fade into nothingness and eventually into whiteness. It was that blankness that kicked me back into reality. Back into a world where my migraines miraculously died out. Back into a white room with white walls. Back into a room with windows and sunlight. There was someone else in the room. It was a man in a white labcoat and he was looking at me with an expression that was hard to describe. "Congratulations," he said. "I think you FAILED the test."
It took a while for reality to hit me, but when it came, it struck me like a truck. Disappointment was radiating from the many observers outside the room as I carefully disconnected several wires monitoring my brain. “Yet again, you have been unable to control your thoughts in a hostile and unknown situation and have shown that you cannot be trusted to continue operation.” The bed I had been laying on was soaked in sweat and worries, the simulation felt as real as well, reality! As I was slowly collecting my bearings from being out for so long, I suddenly remembered the promise that came with failing the exam. A blistering burst of plasma quickly surged through my lower body as yet again, my vision began to blacken. The same senses that came from the simulation had ebbed their ways back into my brain: dread, confusion and isolation. Permanent isolation. Through the excruciating pain that smothered all other things in my mind, I heard faint murmurs and fingers racing across glass panels. With my last vision of the ground forever etched into my brain, much like the simulation, everything turned white for one final time.
Amnesia is a dull and desperate thing. Whereas usual silence and boredom can be replaced with thoughts of recent events or relations I've had with people, amnesia lets you think about nothing but not thinking. It's a wearisome paradox, and I'd been rolling around in it for about five minutes now. With no light or sound but my own quiet breaths and shuffling and no identifiable shapes or objects around me, my lack of memory was put methodically aside by my instinctive brain and I instead began worrying about more physical things. Questions such as "Where am I?", "When will I eat?", and "How do I get out?" took priority in my brain and I started combing the walls for a door or anything that would give me a clue about, well, anything! I finally came to what seemed like a door, except it only came up to my waist. It had no knob or lock to signify that it was a door other than the crack between it and the rest of the wall. I pressed my ear against it and listened intently. My migraines were getting worse. Flashes of blinding colours inundated my brain me without warning and caused a searing pain in my head. Sometimes memories would come and rush into my head, but then the pain came back and the memories drifted away as fast as they had arrived. I was desperate for answers. I was getting nervous that I would never have my memories back, but what difference would that make? If I didn't have them, what was there to be worried about? After what seemed like hours had passed, I finally heard footsteps and what sounded like a lifetime's worth of smoking coming through a series of loud coughs. The steps came closer and closer, until they were right on the other side of the door.
The steps that I heard encouraged me to give a yelp of sheer confusion and frustration. I was desperate for help. Who was on the other side of the door? There was no response to my cry. The disappointment and exhaustion shook me to the bone. I heard the sounds of more footsteps coming up stairs. Suddenly, the door opened inwardly and I was bombarded by the light that burned into my retinas. I had to look away, so my captor was left in my brain as a shadowy silhouette. A hand came in, grabbed me by my collar, and quickly pulled me through the small opening. The new ground felt like dirt beneath my knees, and I breathed in some much-appreciated fresh air. As my eyes slowly adjusted, I saw miles upon miles of open plains, which only added to my perplexion. The captor shoved a loaf of bread into my hand and said "You might wanna' eat this". It was the voice of a man, and it was hoarse and rugged. I chewed and tried to swallow, but the past few hours have taken a toll on my thirst, and my mouth was essentially reduced to a barren desert. "Water", I croaked. A canteen was thrust into my chest. The water was grainy, but who was I to complain? I looked up at my captor for the first time, and I instantly felt a wave of menace. His stubbly chin and leathery cheeks matched his gravelly voice. The vintage rifle he held also made him look like he was from a different time period. Although his rifle wasn't pointed at me, it was still near enough to keep me on edge. His tattered jeans and torn shirt only embellished my view of him but the impertinent look he shot at me was the cherry on top. He looked at me as if I were a prisoner. Was I? There was no one else in sight, but I knew it would be impossible to get away. I could run for days, but he would still have a clear shot at me on this sullen and grim prairie.
I felt slightly better after the water filled the cracks in my throat, and the pain in my head was slowly subsiding, but I was far from being content. It is hard to be at ease when one is held against one's will in the middle of nowhere without any recollection of how one got into this sorry state. I tried my best to recall what happened to me, but I still couldn't remember anything at all. I told myself that I needed to calm down and keep my spirits high in order in order to find a way out of this mess, but how on Earth was I supposed to escape from my captor? Before I knew it, I had been shoved back into the small dark room. Minutes later, the face of the disgruntled man appeared again and looked down on me. Fear gripped me and I shrank away, trying to get as far away from this mysterious man as possible. He opened his mouth and said in his gruff voice, "I'm going out. Don't go trying anything stupid. You won't get far ‘cause a storm's comin'." He swung the door shut, and I was once again left in the dark to ponder my predicament. What was I going to do?
I took a deep breath. I had no idea what was going to happen next and I felt that I was going to lose my mind in this tornado of unexpected events. I took another breath to calm myself down, and I tried to recollect my thoughts. I found that I could think much better after that breath and I carefully analyzed my situation. I knew that I couldn't just stay here and wait for that dangerous-looking man to come back. Who was he anyway? Why did he kidnap me? Was he working for others? What does he want? Anxiety started to creep back into my mind. My primal urge for escape allowed me to yet again make my way to the door, but I still couldn't feel anything except that crack between the door and the wall. I got up to my feet and used the only strength I had left in my broken body in an attempt to smash the door. Surprisingly, the door was unlocked, so it swung open quite easily and I pathetically fell onto the soft and moist dirt from my foolish burst of force. The sudden presence of light pierced my eyes yet again and I became dazed for a second or so. After coming to, I slowly picked up my aching body and threw myself forwards as fast as I could with sense of direction or path whatsoever. The only thought in my brain now was escape. I ran without stopping for what seemed like hours on end until I tripped and collapsed clumsily onto the ground. By then, I was already panting vigorously and desperate for water yet again. Exhausted and near unconsciousness, the voice of my captor suddenly echoed through my brain, "You won't get far, and a storm's comin'." And then waves of blackness crushed my thoughts as I passed out on the ground.
I woke up in the late afternoon. The sun was starting to set in the direction I had just come from, and a gigantic storm loomed ahead. Menacing clouds stretched across the dark sky only to be interrupted at brief intervals by flashes of lightning. The thought of the impending storm was quickly brushed aside as the remembrance of my captor and the thought of him following me choked my other thoughts. I realized that a person like him would not bother to capture me again and would prefer sending a bullet into my body instead. With that thought planted into my brain, I swiftly decided to travel parallel to the storm for as long as I could. Something suddenly felt wrong. My head whipped around and to my horror, my eyes drew a vague silhouette of a man on the horizon. I turned and ran hard. I had been running for less than ten minutes when the storm reached me. The rain drenched my clothes and slowed me down, but I continued running regardless. I ran until I could run no more. I threw another glance over my shoulder but saw not even a bump in the perfect horizon this time. It wasn't comforting at all, for the rain had limited my sight to less than a kilometre. Exhausted and hungry, I looked around for shelter so I could get out of the wind and rain. To my dismay, there was nothing; absolutely nothing. I continued to trudge wearily through the rain, feeling my energy fading just a little bit more after each step.
About twenty minutes later, I was breathing heavily and my body refused to move anymore. My knees buckled under me and I fell to the ground. The thunder growled and the rain continued to soak my entire body. I felt cold and scared, and I was reminded that there was a chance that I could die without even knowing anything about myself. I closed my eyes in despair. Suddenly, I felt a beam of light. I made my eyes squint to get a better look. It was a car, stationary, with two people getting off. I tried my best to figure out who they were and what they were doing. "You caught him?" I heard one of them ask. "Yeah... yesterday. It was really hard to catch him. There were a lot of guards, you know,” replied the all too familiar, coarse voice.
I was so exhausted that I didn't have any energy left to escape from the men exiting the car. I was almost ready to give up but then I decided to drag my limp body behind a tall mound of grass. The two people were still talking and I knew sooner or later, that they would notice that I was hiding close to where they were and to force me back into the little dark room, or worse, kill me. My headaches came back with a vengeance. I didn’t know what was going to happen once they caught me. Hunger haunted my stomach and pain wrecked my brain. I expected death as I closed my eyes and listened to the people as they came closer. I could hear their footsteps getting closer and closer but unexpectedly, their feet stopped. I reluctantly opened my eyes and saw a tall man with short blond hair and light brown eyes looking at me. The man who kidnapped me was absent and I saw the back of a man walking away from me. The tall men came closer to me and in very succinct dialogue, he asked, “Why are you here?” The man increased my anxiety. I didn't reply because my brain did not have the energy or courage to speak and I genuinely did not know my answer. He stretched one hand out of his pocket to help me get up. “Let’s go, it’s too dangerous for you to be here, take these,” he muttered. He gave me a water bottle and a piece of ham and pointed to his left. “Go straight until you see a gas station” he said as he left me and returned to the car. As the car drove away, I followed his instructions. Somehow I found the energy to run and I ran without stopping because I couldn't feel my body anymore. I didn't know how I could I run that fast. It was as if my body floated with the wind. Survival ran through my mind. Why did I listen to the man and follow his directions? Did I know him? The terrible excruciating headache came again and forced me to stop thinking and just run. The rain soaked my clothes and added weight to my heavy steps. What about the man who kidnapped me? I could not stop my brain from functioning. Why didn’t he see me when he was so close to me? My mind was plagued by questions. "Maybe I will get the answers when I get to the gas station." I comforted myself.
Though my sprint started out fairly invigorated by my aspiration to reach the gas station, my strength started, once again, to wane. It felt as if, after running through what seemed like a few kilometres of barren land, I had fled from the storm. After a debilitating battle against both the storm and my physical fatigue, a road uncannily appeared before me. I was glad to be on gravel again, and I was met with a rather inexplicable, yet scorching sun. To quench my now unyielding thirst, I uncapped the bottle that I had received and took a generous gulp of water. I ended up depleting the entire bottle, and was now left with one thing left to fill my mind: intense hunger. The piece of ham, though plain and devoid of supplementary condiments, would suffice for my current situation. I devoured the ham like a wild animal would, and continued on my route. Now I had cleared my worries. Nothing was on my mind except what was ahead of me; the initially distant gas station suddenly appeared in plain sight. At this instance, me unsatisfied stomach growled, and I rushed for a seemingly, too-good-to-be-true convenience store that was under the roof of the gas station, in the hopes of finding food. Upon a closer examination of the gas station, I discovered that it was as abandoned as the rest of the barren land. I suddenly realized that a gas station found in a rustic prairie region in the middle of nowhere would not have any occupants or customers as for that matter. Now, I had nothing left and was nearly out of options as well. I needed sustenance, and quick. Despite being deserted, the gas station still maintained a convenience store like I had hoped for and my first instinct was to scrutinize the place for food or answers. The dusty doorknob was jammed, and the antiquated door was barred from the inside. I kicked three times as hard as I could with what remaining energy I had, and destroyed the weathered, rusty door. Behind it was nothing but an old worn out counter and some naked aisles. My hopes were crushed yet again, and I would soon encounter the worst possible outcome of my escape. I caught sight of the two guards, both armed with rifles, in my peripheral vision, riding in a vehicle that was getting closer and closer to the gas station. I hid behind the counter, hoping they would not notice a figure inside the shop; hoping that they would leave this place alone; hoping that I could remember my true identity and get out of this predicament.
I hid myself behind the counter, and tried my best not to make any sound. The hunger was painful, and my stomach cried out loudly for food. The sound was so loud that it had caught the attention of the two guards. I prayed to God that they would not be able to find me. Unfortunately, I felt four strong hands grab me by my collar, and pull me out of the counter. I really wanted to know who I was before I was killed by the two guards. But, the guards treated me well! They didn't scold or beat me and instead they gave me some nuts, chocolate bars and water. I think they just want to fill up my empty stomach like a prison’s last meal before sending me to the hell. When I looked at the faces of the two guards however, I felt as if I knew them. I tried to force my brain to drag their profiles out of darkness, but I started to have an extreme headache.
My head throbbed. I couldn't stand it anymore. I needed to know who the guards were. "Who are you?" I bursted. "And who am I?" One of them shook his head. The other one said, "We ask the questions around here. NOT YOU." Suddenly, I felt the pain in my head intensifying. My vision started to blur. I felt dizzy the world began to swirl before my eyes. They looked as if they were saying something to me. 'Am I drugged?' I thought. Then, I understood what was happening. I realized then that they had drugged me with their food. I never should have eaten the food they gave me. I ate what they gave without any hesitation, even though I didn't know them at all. Why am I so stupid? I thought about escaping but, I knew it was too late. I was almost about to faint, but I had to know more about them and myself! It was my last thought before I blacked out.
I woke up in the same dark room again. Who am I? Why am I here? Had I been drugged for all this time? So many questions were in my mind but I couldn’t find the answer for any of them. Did the drugs allow me to forget about my identity? My head felt like someone was slowly frying it it and my body felt numb. This time, I didn't want to escape anymore. I want to find out who I am, and why I was trapped here like a lab rat. How do I not know my identity? Was it due to the drugs the kidnapper gave me? The more I thought about who I was, the more my head ached. I decided then that I would stay here until I find out who I really am, and why I was brought to this abandoned place. I made up my mind to stay strong and never back down to these kidnappers. From now on, I will find out who I really am instead of running away. I can’t live my life in despair anymore. I need to start finding the answers to my questions.
After a while though, my migraines ceased. Did those drugs somehow let free my inability to recollect my memories? Those drugs must have helped speed up my brain's recovery. Why were those voices so familiar? My captor started to look familiar as well. Deep inside of my head, I knew that person. I began to pace inside this dark, empty box, and I tried to dig deeper and deeper. And then it hit me! These people were keeping me here because I knew something! What did I know? What kind of information would be important enough to bring me into being secluded in a tiny unlit box placed in a vast, empty prairie? I then heard the ever-so familiar sound of footsteps approaching. I quickly stood up and shrank away from the door knowing that my eyes couldn't take any more of that piercing light. The door burst open and in walked the captor, with his rifle in hand. I edged back into a corner and opened my mouth to say something but he beat me to it. “There’s no use running away. You won't get your memory back so easily.” He raised his rifle and shot me cleanly in the chest.
I woke up in fear, panting, putting my hand over my chest to where blood should've been gushing out from. It was dry. It was only a dream, and before I could reassure myself, the door flew open and it was the captor- but for real, this time. He must have found out my attempted escape from the guards because he looked furious. But I was more focused on the rifle in his hand. “You can’t get it back,” he bellowed. “Get…what?” I questioned dim-wittedly. “Your memories.” How did he know about my amnesia? A million questions were going through my mind and the confusion created a wave of pain. "My memory? What? Why?" What uneased me the most was how these people knew everything about me yet I knew nothing about them or even myself. "It's not time for you to know yet," he snapped and stormed out the room.
It was most likely nighttime, as I had recognized a small campfire for about two meters ahead of me after I had peeked through the narrow crack between the room's wall and its door. The surroundings were dark and gloomy. I tried to think about who I was and the reason I had been detained in this seemingly familiar room. It was not long before the headaches resurfaced. I shook my head trying hard to forget the pain and instead thought about the solutions to those questions. I just could not continue on thinking, and somehow, I felt that the irritating headache had grown worse instead. "Alright, enough!" I thought. The best way for me to avoid the overwhelming headache was to let my brain rest, to be totally carefree and fall asleep.
My thoughts drifted like clouds in the air, and my mind was finally was at rest.
When I woke up the next morning slightly calmed, but a series of footsteps coming from outside made my hair stand up yet again. It must have been two men approaching me since both of them walked with the sounds of heavy boots. One man with a coarse voice was whispering to the other man saying "When do you think we can be sent back? Soon?" "Don't think so, we probably need to stay here for another three or four months." The other retorted. Another robotic and rugged voice responded. The conversation was not at all distinct for me. Their banter did remind me of something, but unfortunately, my brain had difficulty relating to the conversation. Time must have passed swiftly. When I looked out from the crack in my room, I saw someone walking towards me holding something that was impossible to identify with such a small crack. Mindlessly, I retreated a little. I must have been scared by that captor who had fired a bullet to my chest in my dreams with uncontrollable anger. As I pondered what might happen to me if I did not make an effort to escape the door opened and revealed two men standing in front of me. One grabbed my collar and the other held a rifle. The door shut behind me immediately as I was dragged to the ground. "Go! Don't stand there!" one of the guards shouted. I was led to a scarcely illuminated room and inside I could barely see anyone. The huge metal door that had the same height of the wall closed right after I entered the room. An irrepressible ray of silvery white light struck my entire body and all of a sudden, everything in sight disappeared. Upon waking into a room surrounded by glass containing what seemed like scientific machines I underwent pains throughout my body. From head to toe, I felt extraordinarily hot and I could hardly breathe. I saw many people gathered around the glass, watching me intently as if they were looking for results.
My head at this point could no longer stand the pain. Sharp stares were scrutinizing me intently and with surprise as if I was an outer worldly being. The containers and scientific equipment looked dangerous. There were tools that looked as if they were made to do something rather grotesque and the liquids in some of the containers looked very much like human blood. Everything in the room disturbed me greatly and my head, which was saying good morning by starting up the migraines, wasn't helping. I then saw that a guard was moving. As a matter of fact, he was coming straight for me and he wasn't holding a Happy Meal. In his hand was a tool. The tool was the last thing I remembered as I passed out for the hundredth time today. I woke up back in a room. What a surprise. I inspected my body for potential harm but, amazingly, found none. I guess the guard didn't kill or mutilate me. I surveyed my surroundings. There was no doubt about it. I was back in the room that led to the prairies.
As I sat there wondering what was going to happen next, I heard a thud from outside the small door. Curious, I got up and cautiously walked over. At this point, my migraines had started up again but they didn't bother me as much as before. As I edged closer and closer to the door, I noticed that I was sweating furiously and that my heartbeat was off the charts. My migraines were also starting to get to the point where the pain was unbearable and I could hear thumping inside my head. Why was this happening? When I got close enough to touch the doorknob, I saw something I hadn't previously noticed. The door wasn't made of wood. As a matter of fact, the door looked as if it was a machine of some sort. Thump, thump. I turned the knob and the door opened outwards a crack. Outwards? Didn't the door open inward from the outside? Wasn't that how the man opened the door, from the outside? Did the door open outwards when I first opened it? "Okay, so the door opens either way, you're a genius." I jumped at the sound of the voice. "Who's there?" I asked. Only the ambiguous silence of the darkness answered. "Is anyone there?" No answer. Befuddled, I turned my attention back to the door. Thump, thump, thump went my head. Why don't I just go ask my captor some questions to get to the bottom of this? My hand closed around the knob of the door. Thump, thump. I started to turn the knob slowly in a clockwise direction, but I forgot that it didn't open that way so I released the knob to try again. Thump, thump, thump. I wiped my sweaty hands on my pants and closed my hand around the knob again. THUMP, THUMP. This time, I turned the knob counterclockwise. The door opened and my world started to spin. Where was the campfire? I opened the door further and stepped outwards. THUMP, THUMP, THUMP. There was no grass. The air was the same. The ground did not become dirt. I was in another room. Extremely confused, I turned around. The door had disappeared! THUMP, THUMP, THUMP. I wanted to scream out in frustration but my voice didn't work anymore. "I don't get this! What is going on? And why on Earth is this happening to me?" "Because you're special." It was the voice again! I turned towards the direction of the voice. Nobody was there. THUMP, THUMP, THUMP, THUMP. I looked around me to find the source of the voice but was only greeted by the darkness. And then I knew that I was more or less insane. The darkness of the new room started to move. It became a shroud of wisps and tendrils that reached for everything with a sort of lust that was not of this world. The shroud wrapped around the room and slowly devoured the room with delight. And then it came for me. The darkness engulfed my being and the world as I knew it ended. My mind exploded from the pain into an array of colours. It was a full palette of reds, oranges and everything in between. But then, the colours changed. The reds and oranges started to fade into nothingness and eventually into whiteness. It was that blankness that kicked me back into reality. Back into a world where my migraines miraculously died out. Back into a white room with white walls. Back into a room with windows and sunlight. There was someone else in the room. It was a man in a white labcoat and he was looking at me with an expression that was hard to describe. "Congratulations," he said. "I think you FAILED the test."
It took a while for reality to hit me, but when it came, it struck me like a truck. Disappointment was radiating from the many observers outside the room as I carefully disconnected several wires monitoring my brain. “Yet again, you have been unable to control your thoughts in a hostile and unknown situation and have shown that you cannot be trusted to continue operation.” The bed I had been laying on was soaked in sweat and worries, the simulation felt as real as well, reality! As I was slowly collecting my bearings from being out for so long, I suddenly remembered the promise that came with failing the exam. A blistering burst of plasma quickly surged through my lower body as yet again, my vision began to blacken. The same senses that came from the simulation had ebbed their ways back into my brain: dread, confusion and isolation. Permanent isolation. Through the excruciating pain that smothered all other things in my mind, I heard faint murmurs and fingers racing across glass panels. With my last vision of the ground forever etched into my brain, much like the simulation, everything turned white for one final time.
Nothing more, nothing less.